The Supreme Court of Russia announced on Telegram on April 9 that the activities of the human rights organization Memorial are now banned throughout the country. It came after a closed-door hearing that was deemed “top secret”. Only media representatives and diplomats from Germany, Sweden, the Czech Republic and France were allowed to attend the announcement of the decision, which provoked a strong reaction internationally.
The Nobel Committee, which awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize to Memorial, condemned the court’s decision. The EU delegation to Russia described the decision as a “politically motivated blow to civil society in Russia”. Diplomats reported that the Russian state itself “has not only officially recognized the merits of the Memorial, but also provided direct support, and members of the organization have served on the Human Rights Council for many years.”
Russian Supreme Court intentionally keeps wording vague
Memorial’s lawyers pointed out that the Supreme Court had classified the “International Public Movement Memorial” as “extremist”, but pointed out that no organization by that name existed and was not registered in Russia or anywhere else.
He told DW that the wording was deliberately kept vague in order to create a legal basis for possible repression against any memorial structures, as well as their members and supporters. “The Justice Ministry’s actions remained secret and representatives of the organization were barred from attending the hearings,” Sergei Davidis, head of Memorial’s political prisoner assistance program, told DW.
He also stressed that in the face of growing public dissatisfaction with the Russian government, the state is attempting to eliminate independent and reputable sources of information that could promote solidarity and networking in Russian society.
Memorial Document Soviet Repression and the Gulag System
The International Society for Memorial was founded in 1987 and became the leading independent organization dedicated to documenting Soviet-era repression in Russia. Its archives contain thousands of documents about victims of Soviet repression, including thousands of memoirs, hundreds of personal collections, as well as a wealth of materials from researchers on the history of the Gulag, the system of labor camps that was a major instrument of political repression in the Soviet era, and other human rights violations.
According to independent online media outlet MediaZona, authorities can now claim the collection as “property of an extremist organization.” In 2023, Alexander Chernyshov, head of the Perm NGO Center of Historical Memory, was arrested after allegedly trying to smuggle archival documents from Russia to Germany.
Persecution of Memorial’s Russian branch began in 2014 when it was placed on a list of “foreign agents” by the Russian Justice Ministry. This status was later extended to the international branch of the organization, which required all publications and reports to be labeled accordingly. In case of non-compliance, there were fines and restrictions on the Memorial’s activities.
In 2021, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of Memorial International for “repeated” and “gross” violations of Russia’s foreign agent laws. The memorial was also accused of presenting a false image of the Soviet Union.
Pressure continued to increase in March 2023, when the homes and offices of nine Memorial staff members, including Oleg Orlov and Yan Rachinsky, were searched as part of a targeted campaign against independent human rights organizations. That same year, Orlov was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for “defaming” the army. He was released along with other political prisoners in a prisoner swap in August 2024 and has since been living in Germany.
Memorial will continue its human rights activities
Since the decision of April 9 this year, Memorial has announced that it will have to suspend all activities in Russia but will continue its activities abroad. It has banned sharing and commenting posts on social media. All supporters in Russia have been urged to follow the safety guidelines published on the memorial’s website.
Although the Court used the term “International Social Movement” to describe Memorial and it does not actually exist, all people, associations and organizations associated with the NGO may now be at risk. The memorial called on people in Russia not to make any donations, to remove any logos and links on social media, and to remove any compromising material on all digital devices. It warned that people could also attract the attention of law enforcement agencies by subscribing to meme channels.
It also said that although the risks were not as high outside Russia, people could still be subject to persecution abroad. Nevertheless, he said he would continue his work to protect human rights and preserve historical memory.
Nobel Committee: ‘Insult to fundamental values of human dignity’
Earlier this week, Norwegian Nobel Committee chair Jorgen Vatne Friednes said designating the memorial as “extremist” is “an insult to the fundamental values of human dignity and freedom of expression.”
On his Telegram channel, Russian political scientist Alexander Kinev wrote that the desecration of the memorial marked a new level of repression in Russia. He said the organization’s new status would allow officials to target even ordinary employees.
Davidis pointed out that the Memorial did not have a unified, centralized structure, but was instead an extensive network of different groups. He said that people continue to be interested in political repression in the past and even today. He said the work of human rights defenders must continue despite more difficult and risky circumstances.
Russian government strategy to suppress the memory of Soviet crimes
According to Irina Shcherbakova, Memorial’s co-founding member, the latest move against the organization is part of an overall strategy by the Russian government. He explained that this was done taking into account the closure of the Moscow-based Gulag History Museum in 2024, the systematic removal of memorial plaques installed by the Last Address memorial project, restrictions on access to official archives, and the amendment of the official concept for the memory of victims of political repression, from which mention of mass repressions and subsequent mass resettlement has been removed.
Shcherbakova said that all these measures are aimed at controlling the collective memory of Soviet repression and human rights actions today: “It is part of [Russian President Vladimir] “Putin’s ideology, which is becoming increasingly ultra-nationalist.”
Human rights activist Anna Kartnikova agreed, and pointed out that the initiative to commit atrocities at the memorial passed to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), which replaced the KGB, the Soviet secret service that preceded the NKVD. He said the FSB considers the Memorial’s efforts to preserve the memory of Soviet repression and its support of political prisoners today a thorn in its side. He said the new status of the memorial would pave the way for more criminal proceedings and increase pressure on civil society.
This article was originally published in Russian.